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Seems every one is doing it or refusing to do it. I was invited by the very talented and uber fun Pixel Ladies, Deb Cashatt and Kris Sazaki. You can follow their blog here: www.pixeladies.com/blog/. I first met them in person at the SAQA/SDA conference in San Francisco and enjoyed sharing a van with them when we did the studio tours. They are very active in SAQA – Kris is the president of the board and Deb is an active volunteer for SAQA. I am looking forward to seeing them in Portland for the SAQA Fiberlandia conference next year. I recommend their blog to you because it often has a great tip or tutorial for using Photoshop in your art.
To complete my task, I need to answer some questions for you and then assign the task to someone else.
1. What am I working on?
I should be honest and say that I am mainly working on getting my level of creativity back to where it was before we moved to our condo and my studio got seriously downsized. I went from a huge well-lighted daylight basement space to a room that is not quite big enough to be a bedroom for one person. I miss my huge design wall and my large tables on wheels where I did my surface design work. And most of all room to dance while I work!!
I am happy to be part of The Printed Fabric Bee which keeps me in the studio doing some fabric printing every month. This month we are challenged to do a 12 X 12 piece with a science theme. I chose DNA strands. This is my practice fabric where I test colors and prints.
I have also been working on rehabilitating some quilts that were rushed to finish and needed some help. I am quite happy with the change in this one which I call Taking Leaf of My Seasons. Here is the before. I scanned actual leaves and printed them on silk and just kind of threw them at my beautiful hand painted silk organza background. The realistic leaves did not work well with the background and the placement was not artistic. So I patiently removed them.
I painted more silk organza which I fused together and then cut leaves for each season. I wanted a more artistic placement and I think I have achieved that. This is not a very good photo – which is another thing I lost when we moved – a place to photograph my quilts.
The problem is with the fall leaves that are too close to the color of the background. I am going to add some yellow and chartreuse paint to them.
I am also working on a design for a large quilt for a commission for a church here in Oregon. Not sure if I will get the job as they are considering two of us.
2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?
I love to experiment with new ways of adding texture, color and design to my work. I don’t use patterns. I don’t do piecing. I am a fuser and I really like to use fabric like paint in composing an art quilt. I may have a quick sketch, but in general, I work more spontaneously, cutting and placing fabric and finally fusing into place.
3. Why do I write/create what I do?
Well, what would I be doing if I didn’t do what I do? That is the question. I am not one to sit around and read and watch TV all day. I must constantly be knitting, sewing, cooking, quilting, painting. This passion for creating keeps me healthy, mentally and physically.
4. How does my writing/creating process work?
I think I answered that up there in question 2. I just plunge in and start playing with paint, dye, fabric, thread. I often play with an idea in my head for days until I can start working on it.
I have tagged my good friend, Judy Carpenter, who lives in Georgia. We have met in person over the years at conferences and workshops. She does beautiful dye work on fabric and creates the most gorgeous scarves. She also knits obsessively, making beautiful creations. Here is her blog: Judy in the Dyes. Look for her post next Monday.
